Judge Richard Cebull sent hundreds of racist e-mails, panel says

Richard Cebull, the federal judge who sent a racist e-mail about President Obama, retired in May.

Richard Cebull, the federal judge who sent a racist e-mail about President Obama, retired in May.

Photo: James Woodcock, Associated Press

Photo: James Woodcock, Associated Press

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Richard Cebull, the federal judge who sent a racist e-mail about President Obama, retired in May.

Richard Cebull, the federal judge who sent a racist e-mail about President Obama, retired in May.

Photo: James Woodcock, Associated Press

Judge Richard Cebull sent hundreds of racist e-mails, panel says

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Montana's chief federal judge retired in May after admitting he had forwarded a racist e-mail about President Obama from a courthouse computer. Now an investigation by a court disciplinary council in San Francisco has revealed that Judge Richard Cebull sent hundreds of racist, sexist and politically inflammatory e-mails on the same computer over a four-year period.

But when Cebull announced his retirement May 2 after the furor over his Obama e-mail, the council, chaired by Chief Judge Alex Kozinski, dismissed its disciplinary proceedings, withheld its report and issued a statement saying only that it had found "similarly inappropriate e-mails" sent by Cebull.

The council's attempt to conceal its findings reflects a system in which judicial disciplinary agencies tend to err on the side of confidentiality because of the volume of meritless misconduct complaints they receive, said Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond law professor and commentator on the federal courts.

"Because many complaints are frivolous, there's a mind-set to keep things as private as possible," he said.

Cebull has not commented publicly on the report.

A former Montana attorney and federal magistrate, Cebull was appointed to the court by President George W. Bush in 2001 and became Montana's chief federal judge in 2008.

The Great Falls Tribune first uncovered the Obama e-mail that Cebull had forwarded to a group of friends in February 2012, with an introduction that said, "Hope it touches your heart like it did mine." It read:

"A little boy said to his mother, 'Mommy, how come I'm black and you're white?' His mother replied, 'Don't even go there Barack! From what I can remember about that party, you're lucky you don't bark."

Cebull issued an apology after the newspaper reports and acknowledged the message was racist. He said he had forwarded it because "I am not a fan of our president."

In its now-public report, the Ninth Circuit Judicial Council said a subsequent search of court computer tapes dating from 2008 found hundreds of disparaging e-mails sent by Cebull to "personal and professional contacts and court staff."

Many messages were political and expressed "disdain and disapproval for liberal political leaders" or commented on legislation on topics like gun control and civil rights, the report said. It said a significant number included jokes or commentary disparaging African Americans, Native Americans, Latinos- especially illegal immigrants - and women, and a few were antigay.

The report did not quote any of the offending e-mails.

The council said a review of Cebull's cases, and interviews with Montana lawyers, found no evidence of judicial bias, although the report conceded that some attorneys might be reluctant to criticize a sitting judge, even anonymously.

The council said Cebull had done nothing illegal that would justify his impeachment but reprimanded him for actions that undermined "public trust and confidence in the judiciary."

A council majority voted to bar him from receiving new cases for 180 days and order him to undergo training in ethics and racial awareness. Two council members - U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken of Oakland, the Bay Area's chief federal judge, and U.S. District Judge Anthony Ishii of Fresno - voted to go further and ask Cebull to retire, "in recognition of the severity of his violations and the breadth of the public reaction."